Cubs seem ready to be destiny's child

It's perfectly clear that this year's major-league baseball postseason will be ruled by a team of destiny.

You can see them coming a mile away -- one of those periodic touched-by-magic clubs that spit in the face of adversity, overcome overwhelming odds, win over a doubting populace and ride a wave of euphoria to the title.

Ah, but which karma carrier will it be? There seems to be a destiny overload in this year's playoffs, particularly in the National League -- a surfeit of Cinderellas, if you will. Or even if you won't.

• Will it be the Colorado Rockies, whose very presence in the NL Division Series still makes one do a double-take?

The Rockies, who started off 18-27, who were still in last place in June and in fourth place two weeks ago, before reeling off one of the great finishing kicks in baseball history by winning 14 of their last 15?

• Will it be the Philadelphia Phillies, the Stampeding Sons of Moyer, who still stood under .500 as late as July 19 and were a seemingly hopeless seven games out of first place on Sept. 12, with 17 games to play?

The Phillies, who watched with glee as the Mets self-destructed with a 5-12 record down the stretch, and made New York pay by winning 13 of their final 17, despite a rotation that on the surface isn't any scarier than, say, lowly Pittsburgh's across the state?

• Will it be the youthful Arizona Diamondbacks, who were supposed to be a year away from contention but somehow have forged the best record in the NL despite the 14th-ranked offense?

The Diamondbacks, who are under the astute tutelage of Bob Melvin, deemed incapable of leading the Mariners after just two seasons but doing a masterful job to hold together an Arizona team that lost eight of 10 heading into the All-Star break?

• Will it be the Cleveland Indians, who lost 84 games last year and seemed on the verge of collapsing early in the second half when they dropped 14 of 22, only to respond to a tongue-lashing by manager Eric Wedge with a surge that left defending American League champion Detroit in the dust?

The Indians, who have the shakiest postseason closer of them all in Joe Borowski, and who have the lowest payroll of any AL playoff team -- nearly $50 million behind the Los Angeles Angels, $80 million behind Boston, and more than $100 million behind the New York Yankees, but still finished tied with the Red Sox for the best record in the majors at 96-66?

• Will it be the Red Sox, whose long-suffering fans have endured so many indignities in search of that ever-elusive title?

No, wait, that was the 2004 scenario. Now the Red Sox are just another fat-cat juggernaut, like the Yankees, whose one-time-only claim on "Team of Destiny" expired in 2001, and the Angels, who have actually suffered as much real-life heartache as any organization in baseball but exorcised their demons in 2002.

The answer, it turns out, is a simple one: None of the above.

When it comes to destiny, to karma, to fate, to providence, to curse-busting, to riding the magic to the promised land, we're going to hop on the back of our old friend Lou Piniella, and watch him take the Cubs where they haven't been in nearly 100 years.

Hey, if the Red Sox can do it, anything is possible, and Piniella is just the right person to lead them out of the abyss.

Granted, Sweet Lou couldn't get any of his four Seattle playoff teams to the World Series, but after a 22-31 start to 2007 that had him re-thinking his sanity in taking on the massive Cubs challenge, he seems to have imbued this team with a toughness and confidence that will serve them well in October. And November.

The Cubs have better pitching than you think (their 4.04 earned-run average was second-best to San Diego in the NL), including an ace in Carlos Zambrano who was 4-1 with a 1.67 ERA in his last five starts and can take over a series.

Closer Ryan Dempster is a concern, but the Cubs have the kind of big arms in setup relief that Piniella absolutely loves, most notably Carlos Marmol (96 strikeouts in 69-1/3 innings) and Kerry Wood (not what he used to be, but still potent in small doses).

And their lineup, which set a franchise record with 40 home runs in September, is plenty good enough, especially with Alfonso Soriano (14 homers in September) heating up.

In the battle of former Mariners managers, the Cubs will take care of the Diamondbacks in four games. Meanwhile, the Rockies will ride the momentum from their riveting play-in victory to a five-game series triumph over the Phillies, with a lot of 8-7 and 9-8 games.

In the NL Championship Series, the Cubs will need seven games to dispatch Colorado, but they will wrap up the franchise's first pennant since 1945 while avoiding the classic collapses of their 1969, 1984 and 2003 brethren.

The AL will wind up with the inevitable renewal of the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry, as New York takes care of the Indians in five tough games, and Boston holds off the Angels in five tougher games.

Once again, the ALCS between these two will go seven intense games, with the usual cavalcade of brawls, beanball wars and bad blood. And that's just in the bleachers.

Boston will prevail, but the Yankees' defeat won't be nearly as ignominious as it was in 2004, when the Red Sox stormed back from a 3-0 deficit. This time, A-Rod will rise to the moment with a productive postseason, but the Yankees, for all their vaunted youth, will watch old pitchers like Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte and Mike Mussina run out of gas.

That leaves the Red Sox-Cubs dream World Series that was snatched away in 2003 by Boone and Bartman, a Ben Affleck vs. Bill Murray grudge match that will make even NFL diehards pay attention.

Granted, some of the romance is gone by virtue of Boston's '04 title, but that might be a blessing, sparing us the spectacle of these two passionate fan bases sparring over which has suffered harder and more pitiably.

With the charm of Fenway Park and Wrigley Field on full display, with star power galore, with the fiery Piniella in all his glory, it still will be a compelling piece of theater.

And, this time, it will be the Cubs, after 99 years of striving and crying, who are destined to party like it's 1908.

Larry Stone: 206-464-3146 or lstone@seattletimes.com